178 different pesticides and pesticide breakdown products were found on the thousands of produce samples analyzed.

The pesticide residues remained on fruits and vegetables even after they were washed and, in some cases, peeled.

Key findings:

Nearly all samples of strawberries, spinach, peaches, nectarines, cherries and apples tested positive for residue of at least one pesticide.

The most contaminated sample of strawberries had 20 different pesticides.

Spinach samples had an average of twice as much pesticide residue by weight than any other crop. Three-fourths of spinach samples had residues of a neurotoxic pesticide banned in Europe for use on food crops – it’s part of a class of pesticides that recent studies link to behavioral disorders in young children.

WASHINGTON – Strawberries remain at the top of the Dirty Dozen™ list of the EWG Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce™, with spinach jumping to second place in the annual ranking of conventionally grown produce with the most pesticide residues.

EWG’s analysis of tests by the U.S. Department of Agriculture found that nearly 70 percent of samples of 48 types of conventional produce were contaminated with residues of one or more pesticides. USDA researchers found a total of 178 different pesticides and pesticide breakdown products on the thousands of produce samples they analyzed. The pesticide residues remained on fruits and vegetables even after they were washed and, in some cases, peeled.

“If you don’t want to feed your family food contaminated with pesticides, the EWG Shopper’s Guide helps you make smart choices, whether you’re buying conventional or organic produce,” said Sonya Lunder, an EWG senior analyst. “Eating plenty of fruits and vegetables is essential no matter how they’re grown, but for the items with the heaviest pesticide loads, we urge shoppers to buy organic. If you can’t buy organic, the Shopper’s Guide will steer you to conventionally grown produce that is the lowest in pesticides.”

Lunder said it’s particularly important to reduce young children’s exposures to pesticides. The pesticide industry and chemical agriculture maintain that pesticides on produce are nothing to worry about, but doctors and scientists strongly disagree.

“Even low levels of pesticide exposure can be harmful to infants, babies and young children, so when possible, parents and caregivers should take steps to lower children’s exposures to pesticides while still feeding them diets rich in healthy fruits and vegetables,” said Dr. Philip Landrigan of the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. “EWG’s guide can help by giving consumers easy-to-use advice when shopping for their families.”

Landrigan, Dean of Global Health and Director of the Children’s Environmental Health Center at Mt. Sinai, was the principal author of a landmark 1993 National Academy of Sciences study, Pesticides in the Diets of Infants and Children. The study led to enactment of the 1996 Food Quality Protection Act that set safety standards for pesticides on foods.

For the Dirty Dozen list, EWG singled out produce with the highest loads of pesticide residues. In addition to strawberries and spinach, this year’s list includes nectarines, apples, peaches, celery, grapes, pears, cherries, tomatoes, sweet bell peppers and potatoes.

Each of these foods tested positive for a number of different pesticide residues and contained higher concentrations of pesticides than other produce. Pears and potatoes were new additions to the Dirty Dozen, displacing cherry tomatoes and cucumbers from last year’s list.

“From the surge in sales of organic food year after year, it’s clear that that consumers would rather eat fruits and vegetables grown without synthetic pesticides,” said Lunder. “But sometimes an all-organic diet is not an option, so they can use the Shopper’s Guide to choose a mix of conventional and organic produce.”

As if we needed another reason to believe that food is good medicine, it turns out spinach extract has lots of powerful effects on blood sugar, satiety, and cravings. You’re probably wondering when we’re going to see a similar study about chocolate or wine. Just remember, drinks and desert do not make a meal. Add some spinach and at the very least, you’ll be on the right track .

August 5, 2015, CLEARWATER, FL––The nutritional value of spinach is well documented. The vegetable is rich in crucial vitamins A, C, E, and this versatile food that can be sauteed, used as the foundation for a salad, or be an essential ingredient in a festive party dip.

A key element of spinach is thylakoids, a photosynthetic membrane of chloroplasts. In a new study(http://bit.ly/1Da1ONr), a team of medical and nutritional researchers measured subjective satiety (the feeling of being full after eating) ratings and food intake after a single dose of thylakoids from a patented spinach leaf extract, and measured them against participants who consumed a placebo.

They found that a single supplement of five grams of the extract increased satiety measured subjectively over two hours. Adding the extract to the diet may influence food cravings by acting on the brain’s reward system thereby offering a unique way to address the issue of weight gain in a manner that is convenient for the public.

Sixty overweight volunteers (30 male and 30 female) were enrolled in a double-blind randomized crossover study who consumed the spinach extract or placebo in random order for at least a week apart. The spinach extract was mixed with standard beverages but not with the placebo.

Hunger, fullness, desire to eat, satisfaction, thirst and an appetite for sweet, salty and savory foods were assessed. Blood was drawn to assess baseline fats and sugars before a standard breakfast meal, which was followed four hours later by a five gram dose of the spinach extract and a standard lunch. Other measurements were taken to assess appetite satisfaction before lunch and at regular intervals until a dinner was served four hours later.

Findings

The researchers found that when compared to a placebo, a single dose of five grams of thylakoids increased appetite satisfaction measured subjectively over two hours. That satisfaction was accompanied by a greater increase in the after-dinner blood sugar response.

The spinach extract contained concentrated thylakoids extracted from spinach leaves. By interacting with fats and retarding fat digestion, thylakoids membranes are believed to promote the release of satiety hormones and reduce the hunger-stimulating hormone ghrelin. This may lead to a release of a mechanism for increasing appetite suppression.

The study also suggests that thylakoids supplementation may influence food cravings by acting on the reward system of the brain. “As obesity remains a critical impediment to good health for millions of Americans, these findings might offer one solution to over-eating, a critical cause of unwanted weight gain,” according to the authors. “Reducing the desire for salt may be particularly helpful for those with high blood pressure,” they add.

Funding
The study was funded in part by a grant from Greenleaf Medical AB, Stockholm, Sweden.

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About the Journal of the American College of Nutrition
The Journal of the American College of Nutrition (JACN) publishes original and innovative research articles, commentaries, and other data about nutrition which is useful for researchers, physicians, and other health care professionals. The journal is published six times per year and is the flagship publication of the American College of Nutrition.

Roasted red peppers, mini crab cakes and Brazil nuts can all help to increase fertility. They will all feature in a special Fertility Buffet, laid on by Dr Margaret Rayman, Director of the MSc Course in Nutritional Medicine at the University of Surrey, on 3 July 2003.

A good, balanced diet rich in fruit and vegetables (at least five portions a day) and protein sources such as meat, poultry and fish, is necessary to optimise fertility.

Meat is a good source of animal protein and important minerals such as iron and zinc, the latter being especially important for fertility. “Oysters are by far the best source of zinc, but they are not included in this meal, as they are out of season,” Dr Rayman explained. “Fatty fish is a very good source of n-3 fatty acids, which are important in the development of the fetus’ brain and vision.”

To give yourself the best chance of conceiving, alcohol and smoking should be avoided. This applies to both men and women, as there is evidence that sperm damage through smoking can predispose to cancer in the offspring.

All the dishes on the buffet were carefully selected by Vicky Chudleigh, State Registered Dietician from Addenbrookes Hospital in Cambridge.

“The sunflower, pumpkin and sesame seed bread contains vitamin E, which is claimed to be an aphrodisiac because of its effects on boosting circulation. It is also an antioxidant and needed for fertility,” Vicky explained.

“Brazil nuts and mini crab cakes are both excellent sources of selenium and required for sperm motility. Without adequate selenium, sperm tails kink and break off. Selenium also minimises the risk of miscarriages.”

Roasted red peppers, tomatoes, pesto (containing basil) and of course, chocolate mousse, were all selected for their reputed aphrodisiac qualities.

Spinach, together with other dark green leafy vegetables, provide the folate required to reduce the risk of neural tube defect in the developing baby. The cheese platter not only contains calcium and zinc, but also vitamin A, which aids the production of sex hormones. They are all needed for healthy reproduction and libido.

The fertility buffet will not only be a gastronomic experience, but also forms part of the module, Pregnancy, Infancy & Childbirth in the Nutritional Medicine course, aimed at doctors. But there will be no retiring to the drawing room after dinner, as the doctors on the course will need to complete an assignment on dietary advice to give to their patients.